A freshman from Jakarta rewrites Oregon tennis history
Oregon had never sent a player this far. Then a freshman from Indonesia did it in her first spring on campus. Janice Tjen, a first-year standout from Jakarta, marched to the 2021 NCAA Division I Women’s Tennis Singles Championship semifinals, the deepest singles run in Ducks history and a breakthrough that put Eugene on the national tennis map.
Tjen didn’t tiptoe into the spotlight; she smashed the door open. She ripped through four ranked opponents in straight sets to reach the final four, including a composed 6-2, 6-4 quarterfinal win over Florida State’s Emmanuelle Salas. That victory sealed two milestones at once: the first NCAA singles semifinal berth in Oregon program history and the first Pac-12 player to make the women’s singles semifinals since 2015.
The semifinal brought a seasoned test: Miami’s Estela Perez-Somarriba, a former NCAA champion and the tournament’s No. 2 seed. Tjen went swing-for-swing early, pushing the first set to a tiebreak before dropping it 7-6 (4). The second set ran away 6-0, a reminder of Perez-Somarriba’s experience in the biggest moments. The veteran advanced to the final, where Virginia’s Emma Navarro captured the 2021 title.
Even with the semifinal loss, the run cemented Tjen as one of the nation’s top freshmen. She finished 22-3 in singles, a school-record .880 winning percentage, and stacked two separate 10-match win streaks—one to start her college career. Against ranked opponents, she went 10-3. In a season without a traditional fall schedule for many programs, those numbers hit even harder: no tune-up circuit, and still dominance.
By year’s end, the ranking systems agreed with the eye test. Tjen closed at No. 6 in the ITA Singles Rankings—the highest final singles ranking in Oregon history. Honors followed: ITA All-America status, Pac-12 Freshman of the Year, and ITA Northwest Region Rookie of the Year. No Duck had ever claimed those last two awards until she did.
How Tjen’s run happened—and why it matters
The NCAA singles draw is a grinder: 64 players, six rounds, and almost no margin for a slow start. A freshman reaching the semifinals means stringing together four wins against the best collegiate players in the country, often on back-to-back days. Tjen made it look routine with straight-set wins in every match before the semifinal. That kind of efficiency is rare at nationals and speaks to shot selection, fitness, and poise under pressure.
For Oregon, this was more than a splash—it was a reset of what’s possible. The Ducks have long lived in a conference stacked with bluebloods like Stanford, UCLA, and USC, programs with deep NCAA singles pedigrees. Tjen’s run cuts through that history. It shows recruits—domestic and international—that Oregon can be a landing spot for players with pro-level ambitions and immediate impact.
The Pac-12 context matters, too. The league sends quality players to the NCAA field every year, but semifinal runs are rare. Being the first Pac-12 player to reach the national semifinals since 2015 underlines the scale of her accomplishment inside a power conference known for depth.
There’s also the international angle. College tennis thrives on global talent, and Tjen’s surge from Jakarta to Eugene is a case study. She arrived without a fall slate to acclimate, then stacked top-25 wins all spring. For international prospects weighing their options, it’s a strong signal: the transition can work quickly with the right fit and support system.
Beyond the headlines, the season-long consistency jumps off the page. Two separate 10-match winning streaks suggest resilience, not just a hot week at nationals. A 10-3 record against ranked players shows she did her best work against the toughest schedule. And the .880 winning percentage—a program record—puts her season among the most efficient in the country that year.
Oregon’s staff now has proof of concept: a path from the practice courts to late May relevance on the national stage. That tends to ripple. Visibility rises, schedules strengthen, and belief inside the locker room changes. The next Duck to qualify for NCAAs won’t be carrying the burden of the unknown anymore.
For those tracking the sport, the semifinal against Perez-Somarriba offered a window into the final step. Tjen traded blows for a full set with one of the era’s most accomplished collegiate players. The second-set drop is a typical learning curve at this level: veterans squeeze margins, shorten rallies, and apply scoreboard pressure. Semifinals are where those details decide matches, and that experience often fuels the next leap.
If you’re building a program, you can’t script year-one outcomes like this. You get them from players who turn tight points into separators. Tjen did that all season long, from the first ball of her debut through the high-wire points at nationals. She set a new standard for Oregon women’s tennis, and she did it in one spring.
Season snapshot:
- First Oregon player to reach the NCAA women’s singles semifinals
- First Pac-12 women’s singles semifinalist since 2015
- Final 2021 record: 22-3 (.880, school record)
- 10-3 vs. ranked opponents; four straight-set wins at NCAAs before the semis
- ITA Singles final ranking: No. 6 (highest in Oregon history)
- Honors: ITA All-America, Pac-12 Freshman of the Year, ITA Northwest Region Rookie of the Year
Oregon had waited decades for a single-player breakthrough on the national stage. It arrived with a freshman who didn’t blink. That changes the conversation around the program—and sets a high bar for whoever comes next.